Edward Harris, Visit Williamsburg on Tourism, Sneakers, and America's 250th

1 - > SPEAKER_00: How's it going, Steven? 2 - > I am of the light. 3 - > How are you? 4 - > Not bad.

5 - > Not bad. 6 - > A lot going on, but I can only imagine you've got to have a lot 7 - > going on, not only this time of year, but this year in 8 - > particular. 9 - > SPEAKER_01: Yeah, the 250th birthday, once in a generation 10 - > moment for Americans. 11 - > And we like to say that here in the historic triangle of 12 - > Virginia is where America's journey begins.

13 - > Between the Jamestown first settlement, the revolutionary 14 - > think tank of Williamsburg, and the Yorktown victory, the battle 15 - > where we won our independence. 16 - > This is where it all really starts. 17 - > And so we are seeing an uptick in visitation, which is great 18 - > already. 19 - > We've had the Today Show from NBC come to town and do their 20 - > show with Al Roker and Dylan Dreyer, excuse me.

21 - > And it's been awesome. 22 - > We've got PBS lined up to broadcast nationally on 4th of 23 - > July for the first time in decades. 24 - > They won't be in DC. 25 - > They will be in Williamsburg.

26 - > So we've just had a really good run. 27 - > And there's lots of events popping up, special projects. 28 - > It's been a big year already. 29 - > My name's Edward Harris, and I am the president and CEO of 30 - > Visit Williamsburg, Virginia.

31 - > So you've been with the destination for just over two 32 - > years. 33 - > That's right. 34 - > Yeah, this month actually is the start of my third year here in 35 - > Williamsburg. 36 - > SPEAKER_00: What are you most proud of?

37 - > SPEAKER_01: I guess just the team here. 38 - > We've added a few new positions, but we've all kind of rallied 39 - > together to seize the moment of this year. 40 - > And I'm proud of all the new agency partners we've onboarded 41 - > to refresh the story. 42 - > I'm proud of the new platform that we came up with from an 43 - > advertising standpoint that we rolled out last summer, 44 - > actually, which was a refresh from life at your pace, which 45 - > was pretty strong coming out of the pandemic, but we were ready 46 - > to introduce something new for the 250th year.

47 - > And that new platform is where America's journey begins. 48 - > And so it was a new platform for us, something we felt we could 49 - > own given what's happened here. 50 - > And the response has been great. 51 - > We've really focused more so than recent years on all the 52 - > great history here, as well as Bush Gardens and some of the 53 - > other key attractions and things to do in this area.

54 - > But for a moment like this, the 250th birthday, we wanted to 55 - > just remind Americans of the importance that this destination 56 - > has. 57 - > So I guess I'm proud of just the team embracing a lot of new 58 - > thinking, new partners that we've been working with, new 59 - > events like the Today's show coming to town, just thinking 60 - > outside the box. 61 - > I think it does when it comes to just thinking about meeting new 62 - > audiences, developing content, whether it's blogs or adding a 63 - > chat bot to our homepage, which is rooted in AI, just presenting 64 - > the product in new ways through AI.

65 - > I think there's a lot of great work being done across 66 - > destination marketing organizations or destination 67 - > management organizations are embracing it more and more every 68 - > season. 69 - > I think AI is obviously a hot topic and an agenda topic at 70 - > almost every conference on the tourism circuit. 71 - > I think it's just playing with it and getting comfortable with 72 - > it and seeing how it can enhance what you're doing to attract 73 - > visitors. 74 - > How did you end up working in the destination space?

75 - > My background is in brand development for consumer product 76 - > companies, specifically sneaker brands and apparel brands. 77 - > Spent 15 years at the headquarters of some fun 78 - > companies like Converse, Timberland, Under Armour, to 79 - > name a few, eBay. 80 - > And when you work in those worlds of very high levels of 81 - > competition from different brands, all going after the same 82 - > customer, you work with some impressive agencies and creative 83 - > people, media planners, and you do a lot of research and 84 - > studying the competition.

85 - > And so I was in this sort of unique industry for 15 years. 86 - > And then I came over to become the head of marketing at Valley 87 - > Forge Tourism when I made the jump, just outside of 88 - > Philadelphia, and just kind of rolled out everything that I had 89 - > learned in that other world. 90 - > And so, in a way, we were doing some things that maybe were new 91 - > to the industry at the time, but for me were kind of it was kind 92 - > of second nature. 93 - > But I came into this space primarily because I at the time 94 - > I was at eBay and I was at one of the regional headquarters 95 - > outside of Philadelphia, and that e-commerce grind of the 96 - > store online never closes, never shuts down.

97 - > And it's 24-7. 98 - > And when there's issues, they've got to be addressed right away. 99 - > Inventory needs to be sold. 100 - > You just get into this treadmill that just never turns off.

101 - > And it was really a lifestyle change I needed at that point in 102 - > my life. 103 - > And so nonprofit tourism destination management came up 104 - > on a job search I was doing one day when I was I was getting to 105 - > a point where I was like, you know, maybe I'm ready to be a 106 - > bigger fish in a smaller pond versus working for these giant 107 - > companies. 108 - > And that's ultimately what I did. 109 - > I made the leap and I went from marketing sneakers and apparel 110 - > to marketing experiences, which is what we do in this world.

111 - > And there's a lot of parallels, even though it sounds very 112 - > different. 113 - > There's a lot of preparation and thinking ahead and competition 114 - > and all the unique tools you can use to connect with people who 115 - > want to buy your product, so to speak, or do your experience in 116 - > this case. 117 - > SPEAKER_00: One of the things that I maybe harp on a little 118 - > bit is the fact that there's only so much knowledge in the 119 - > room. 120 - > It's not until industries embrace technology best 121 - > practices that are applied in other industries that is the 122 - > entire room able to grow.

123 - > What do you think are maybe two or three of the best 124 - > transferable skills that uh people who may not yet be in 125 - > tourism or maybe starting out in tourism should really focus in 126 - > on if they want to get into a leadership role? 127 - > SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think there's a couple things. 128 - > I think from a leadership standpoint, it's being able to 129 - > listen. 130 - > Brainstorming sessions are where I've found the best ideas come 131 - > from or they're built, so to speak.

132 - > Somebody makes a suggestion, but then somebody else has an idea 133 - > and it becomes a better idea. 134 - > And bring a group of people together and they all feel part 135 - > of something, magic happens. 136 - > And it could be a new campaign, it could be lots of different 137 - > things. 138 - > But I think collaboration in this world is so important to 139 - > stand out.

140 - > And I would say the bravery to test new ideas, whether it's a 141 - > new festival, a new itinerary, a new web page, a new website, a 142 - > new, you know, it could be anything, but constantly having 143 - > something baking in the oven that you're gonna introduce. 144 - > I think that's what I took from every season rolling out a whole 145 - > new product line of sneakers and colors and fabrics and jackets 146 - > and shirts and shorts. 147 - > And every three months, it's hyper competitive.

148 - > And you've got to tell a whole new story that represents 149 - > something. 150 - > And we do that tourists. 151 - > The seasons change. 152 - > What's next?

153 - > What could we add that doesn't exist today? 154 - > Here in Williamsburg, last fall, we introduced a pancake festival 155 - > on National Pancake Day because we have an unusual number of 156 - > pancake houses. 157 - > Within nine square miles, we have over 10 pancake houses, and 158 - > we decided, you know what? 159 - > Let's lean in, let's celebrate that.

160 - > So trying new things, I think is so important. 161 - > Having brainstorming regularly, obviously, data and measurement, 162 - > everybody talks about that. 163 - > That's important. 164 - > But the bravery piece, I think, is something that isn't 165 - > discussed enough in terms of marketing in general.

166 - > Our work is put out there into the world for people to digest. 167 - > Not to knock an accountant or economist or financial person, 168 - > but there's a certain amount of bravery of putting something new 169 - > out into the world and watching the response. 170 - > When you're working side by side with sneaker designers and 171 - > seeing a sketch ultimately end up on a wall in, say, Foot 172 - > Locker and a group of people going up and picking it off the 173 - > wall and looking at this, and you are along for that ride to 174 - > see it from its initial stages.

175 - > To me, that's the best part about these kind of jobs is you 176 - > have ideas on a whiteboard or on a piece of paper, and they 177 - > actually turn into something that's put out into the world. 178 - > And you can do that over and over again. 179 - > And to me, that's why I think I'll stay in this world forever, 180 - > is because to me, that gets me juiced. 181 - > SPEAKER_00: One of the things I love most about working in this 182 - > industry is the opportunity that I have to chat with people who 183 - > are experiencing it.

184 - > Tell me about a time when you ran into a visitor in 185 - > Williamsburg that helped shape your vision for the destination. 186 - > SPEAKER_01: I think it's happened more than once where if 187 - > you get a chance to visit a place like Williamsburg and just 188 - > walk around the colonial streets, it's like being in a 189 - > time machine. 190 - > Interpreters and reenactors are walking up to you in character, 191 - > and you really start to feel like you're walking down a 192 - > street in 1776.

193 - > And sometimes people forget that although that is probably the 194 - > number one reason people like to visit this area, there's Bush 195 - > Gardens a couple miles away that is a completely different 196 - > experience. 197 - > You want to talk about an adrenaline rush on, I think they 198 - > have 12 roller coasters now, versus sort of the calm, 199 - > beautiful Williamsburg vibe you get walking around the colonial 200 - > streets. 201 - > And I think people wonder, you know, what else is there to do 202 - > here?

203 - > And that's something as marketers, I think you'll see 204 - > from our team as we emerge out of the 250th celebration, is 205 - > you'll see us turn the volume up on things like Bush Gardens and 206 - > places like Great Wolf Lodge and Water Country and our awesome 207 - > breweries and restaurants and pancake houses and golf courses 208 - > and water sports and so much more stuff that I think most 209 - > people are familiar with. 210 - > So I guess in summary, people say, you know, what else is 211 - > there to do here?

212 - > The history here is incredible, but if I'm not really into that, 213 - > what else can I do? 214 - > And so that has me thinking every day about how are we gonna 215 - > take that next step once we get through all the celebratory 216 - > stuff coming up for the big 250th birthday and really 217 - > leverage that. 218 - > SPEAKER_00: It's a comeback story. 219 - > And you've been here for the 250th.

220 - > Here are reasons to come back. 221 - > Great way to say it. 222 - > I was in Williamsburg just a couple months ago. 223 - > Really?

224 - > I was. 225 - > I'm a digital nomad. 226 - > So what you see behind me is actually the inside of my 227 - > motorcoach. 228 - > No way.

229 - > I'm parked on the shore of Flathead Lake outside of 230 - > Gablacier National Park today. 231 - > But we were in Virginia and we made time to visit Williamsburg 232 - > and to experience quite a bit of what the community had to offer. 233 - > I am a pancake aficionado. 234 - > Are you really?

235 - > Oh, we went out for pancakes for dinner the other day. 236 - > SPEAKER_01: Oh, that's great. 237 - > SPEAKER_00: It's an issue. 238 - > What's something about the destination that you learned 239 - > once you were living there that may surprise others?

240 - > SPEAKER_01: I knew a decent amount about Williamsburg 241 - > because growing up in Pennsylvania, about five, six 242 - > hours away north from here, the school I went to for middle 243 - > school had a school trip to Williamsburg. 244 - > And it was actually an overnight trip. 245 - > So I had lots of good memories from that trip, that first trip 246 - > of kind of getting away with people my own age, away from mom 247 - > and dad, even though it was a school trip. 248 - > And I'll be honest, I just remember how much fun I had.

249 - > I forgot a lot about the history of the words. 250 - > But that feeling of just discovery and heritage of where 251 - > we came from was just really interesting to me. 252 - > So so on that school trip, you know, you're here, you 253 - > experience Williamsburg. 254 - > If you're lucky, you also get to get over to Jamestown and 255 - > Yorktown.

256 - > But what it you don't realize, I don't think, on your initial 257 - > visit, is just the geographic location of being part of the 258 - > Virginia Peninsula and the amount of water sports. 259 - > And whether it's kayaking or going out on a historical 260 - > schooner or jet skiing, all the stuff that can be done on the 261 - > water here. 262 - > I think the average person doesn't know that. 263 - > I think we'll talk more about that going forward.

264 - > That's definitely one thing that I've learned since being here. 265 - > Like lots of people have boats here. 266 - > That's just something I never really thought about before I 267 - > moved here. 268 - > What's something I didn't ask that you wish I did?

269 - > That is an excellent question. 270 - > I guess some of the challenges really of a destination like 271 - > this is there's actually a lot of things to do here, and you 272 - > can only focus on so much of that story. 273 - > And the DNA of this region is really about early American 274 - > history. 275 - > I mean, that's what makes the historic triangle of Virginia 276 - > what it is.

277 - > And the challenge for people in my role is how much do you talk 278 - > about that, which everybody seems to know already, versus 279 - > all the other things that make this place so unique? 280 - > And that's just it's an ongoing challenge. 281 - > Not everybody loves early American history, but it is the 282 - > differentiator that makes us different than any other place. 283 - > And so that in and of itself is a challenge, acknowledging that, 284 - > hey, early American history for some people puts them to sleep.

285 - > But that's where Busch Gardens comes into play and some of 286 - > these other attractions you can experience. 287 - > And so if there is a challenge, it's taking a place that has a 288 - > lot of variety, but has a perception of just being all 289 - > about one thing and balancing how much beyond the thing you're 290 - > famous for do you should you talk about? 291 - > SPEAKER_00: What is something you're looking to learn this 292 - > year? 293 - > SPEAKER_01: I think the comeback story that you mentioned 294 - > earlier, this area has been getting a lot of really great PR 295 - > and press and interest in the build-up to this once in a 296 - > generation moment of the semi-quincentennial, which I can 297 - > finally say accurately, but what does all this mean for the 298 - > destination going forward?

299 - > Will it renew a sense of discovery for people to come 300 - > back or arrive here for the first time? 301 - > And what's interesting about this month, specifically in the 302 - > lead up to 4th of July, is that in two weeks we're gonna cut the 303 - > ribbon on a 200,000 square foot indoor sports and events center 304 - > right across the parking lot from the Colonial Williamsburg 305 - > Visitor Center. 306 - > And what's interesting about that is not that it's gonna 307 - > bring in a lot of new visitors through big sports tournaments, 308 - > but in 1975, on the eve of the bicentennial, Busch Gardens 309 - > opened in Williamsburg and ushered in a whole new chapter 310 - > wave of tourism that emerged here in our neck of the woods.

311 - > And it's just interesting the timing of how here we are, right 312 - > before the semi-quincentennial. 313 - > 50 years later, Busch Gardens is still going strong, and we're 314 - > about to introduce another B venue that's gonna draw in 315 - > groups from out of state. 316 - > That's exciting, it's gonna create, I think, sort of a 317 - > renaissance for this area as people come in to play sports 318 - > here for the first time and really get to see how unique and 319 - > beautiful and special this area of the country is.

320 - > I think it's gonna put in motion an increase in the population 321 - > over time, lots of new hotel development. 322 - > And I think it's only gonna get better. 323 - > It's exciting to be part of the team that's gonna open up this 324 - > new sports and events center and really change the trajectory of 325 - > what's possible here. 326 - > SPEAKER_00: It's exciting, Americana.

327 - > Yes. 328 - > I'm giving you all the taglines for your next campaign. 329 - > I know. 330 - > This is awesome.

331 - > The comeback America. 332 - > I mean, I love it. 333 - > Really small. 334 - > What would you like to ask me?

335 - > SPEAKER_01: Why did you decide to start a podcast? 336 - > SPEAKER_00: I worked in tourism and tourism development for 25 337 - > years or so. 338 - > I discovered about 11 years ago I love learning more than I love 339 - > the actual travel experience. 340 - > So learning about new things and places and people and music and 341 - > art and culture and nature and food and all this stuff.

342 - > Finding a way to make education better for the tourism industry 343 - > had been a backburner project of my destination consulting work. 344 - > And then COVID struck. 345 - > And my destination consulting work evaporated overnight, and I 346 - > had the choice. 347 - > Was I going to restart a consulting business from 348 - > scratch?

349 - > Or was I going to focus on something new that might be more 350 - > personally gratifying and might have a greater impact? 351 - > So started a nonprofit. 352 - > One of the things that you have to do when you start an 353 - > organization is you have to have credibility. 354 - > You have to have credibility and you have to have connections.

355 - > And while I'd been working with destinations for a long time, it 356 - > was a different contact than it was going to need for the 357 - > learning organization. 358 - > So A, it was a great way to get the CEO on the phone. 359 - > B, it was a great way to recruit a team of advisors and mentors 360 - > who knew the industry inside out. 361 - > And C, it's turned into a hallmark for leadership in the 362 - > industry.

363 - > And we have 20,000 listeners. 364 - > Wow. 365 - > I have learned from each and every CEO that I've talked to 366 - > over the last five years. 367 - > And several have become good friends.

368 - > It was meeting people, getting the right people on the phone, 369 - > building credibility, and finding mentors. 370 - > And I think back to that Robert Heinlein quote, when one teaches 371 - > to learn, people have people who are passionate about what they 372 - > do have an interest in teaching others. 373 - > No matter how subtle or how overt, teaching is a great tool. 374 - > SPEAKER_01: You're speaking my language.

375 - > I taught a marketing management class in an FBA program for 12 376 - > years. 377 - > One night a week. 378 - > I miss it. 379 - > It was too much to keep when I accepted this opportunity two 380 - > years ago.

381 - > I really missed teaching because of the things you just said. 382 - > And I found with teaching, I was learning as much as I was 383 - > sharing from the students in the class. 384 - > But you mentioned something I want to ask you about real 385 - > quickly. 386 - > Something about you mentioned the word culinary.

387 - > And I'm just curious, when you've talked with lots of CEOs 388 - > and different destinations, how often does culinary pop up as a 389 - > very important reason why people will go to a place? 390 - > SPEAKER_00: I think reflecting on the conversations I've had, I 391 - > think it comes up as one of the benefits of a community or one 392 - > of the features of a community, with few exceptions. 393 - > I haven't heard anybody mention it as one of the primary. 394 - > SPEAKER_01: Right.

395 - > SPEAKER_00: You better. 396 - > SPEAKER_01: I just wonder if anybody leans into that more 397 - > than others or leads more than okay. 398 - > SPEAKER_00: Yeah, if you look at just about anything in 399 - > Louisiana, okay. 400 - > They really lean into the Cajun Creole food scene.

401 - > New Orleans, Baton Rouge, great examples of that. 402 - > The other one that's really come to mind is was that back to 403 - > nature, the farm to fork. 404 - > unknown: Yeah. 405 - > SPEAKER_00: So if you look at Sacramento, yes, it's the state 406 - > capital, but it's also one of the farm to fork capitals in the 407 - > country.

408 - > Is that right? 409 - > Oh, yeah. 410 - > The food scene influences that. 411 - > And then you get into food and wine.

412 - > SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I asked because that's to answer your 413 - > earlier question. 414 - > It's another thing I've discovered in moving here from a 415 - > different state is the quality of the restaurant and the food 416 - > here is outstanding. 417 - > And we really need to figure out a good way to celebrate that 418 - > amongst all the other things you can do. 419 - > SPEAKER_00: I will attest to that.

420 - > SPEAKER_01: We got some good meals. 421 - > Okay, good. 422 - > We'll have to have come back sometime. 423 - > SPEAKER_00: Will I see you at the DI conference in Portland?

424 - > SPEAKER_01: Yes, absolutely. 425 - > Or if you're not one. 426 - > Williamsburg.com is the place to plan your trip.

427 - > And definitely follow us on all of our social channels from 428 - > TikTok to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Snapchat. 429 - > SPEAKER_00: Fantastic. 430 - > That's a great conversation. 431 - > So I really appreciate your time.

432 - > Well, thanks for inviting me, and we'll talk again soon. 433 - > Enjoy your afternoon. 434 - > You too. 435 - > Thanks.

436 - > Bye.